Sink or SWIM! with WittyCityGirl - CLOSED (Page 8)

Alicia - thanks.

20 min walk done - 0.98 miles. I did set out to do a mile time test but apparently my mapping didn't go very well and I only ended up with .98 miles in 20 min 10 secs.  Giving me a pace of 20:34.

The fastest I have yet to do without going downhill. Tommorrow another 20 mins on possibly a slightly different route

Looks like the rest of you are doing well this week too.

50 min bike (trainer) done this AM. I'm using JorgeM's winter cycling program until I can get on the road. Its fantastic, and really kicks your butt in a good way. Challenging, no doubt. Today was lots of 100%+ HR intervals, and the occasional thought of possible vomiting on the bike

Just for fun, here's the view from my bike trainer. The last mentor group dubbed this the "Silence of the Lambs" basement. I just think it makes me mentally tough to have to look at this for an hour while riding nowhere at 4:30 AM. . I dont' need no stinkin' TV! lol.

itziaol - 2011-04-12 10:07 PM

WittyCityGirl - 2011-04-12 2:30 PM oooh, Itzia! I kept your triathlon location as "Mexico" in my dashboard because I had to look it up and double-check what country it is.  I'm awful at geography!

Don't worry, Veracruz is a port in Mexico.

http://maps.google.com/

I rode my mountain bike for 9.54 K and then swam 800m.  I didn't really try to remember minutes and strokes to play golf, but I observed that it always takes me 1:03 to do 50m, I do 19 to 23 strokes in 25m (most times 22) and I do the kick, kick, kick thing LOL  I hadn't noticed that.   By the way Sara, I loved that explanation.

Good night! 

Those are great swim numbers! Keep up the great work!

I liked the kick description as well since I had no idea what any of the six/four/two beat kick things mean. Still can't do them, but at least I know what they mean. Sorta.

Where is that fantastic Itzia on the bike avatar?

When you reach Kona, NBC will feature you on the TV special!

Mike

Mike_D - 2011-04-13 7:10 AM

itziaol - 2011-04-12 10:07 PM

WittyCityGirl - 2011-04-12 2:30 PM oooh, Itzia! I kept your triathlon location as "Mexico" in my dashboard because I had to look it up and double-check what country it is.  I'm awful at geography!

Don't worry, Veracruz is a port in Mexico.

http://maps.google.com/

I rode my mountain bike for 9.54 K and then swam 800m.  I didn't really try to remember minutes and strokes to play golf, but I observed that it always takes me 1:03 to do 50m, I do 19 to 23 strokes in 25m (most times 22) and I do the kick, kick, kick thing LOL  I hadn't noticed that.   By the way Sara, I loved that explanation.

Good night! 

Those are great swim numbers! Keep up the great work!

I liked the kick description as well since I had no idea what any of the six/four/two beat kick things mean. Still can't do them, but at least I know what they mean. Sorta.

Where is that fantastic Itzia on the bike avatar?

Thanks Mike!  What I didn't mention is that I rest for 30 secs more or less every 50m  LOL  I really need to get fitter!! 

Will change my avatar today! 

Going in what will surely be a difficult meeting at work.  I've decided to take charge in many areas of my life.  Wish me luck!

Ooops!  Double post... sorry.

Mike- I get the no TV/Music thing, it is what I love about running.  I have developed an allergy to the treadmill and trainer though!  You are a dedicated triathlete.  

Daughter home sick again.  I am looking for a Plan B later today.  I have a swim scheduled but not sure of open swim times in the afternoon.  I am a first thing in the morning swimmer.  

Sara - I taught myself to swim (way wrong)  when I started and hurt my shoulder.  I got a coach to straighten out my stroke and have done much better.  Drills were the key for me.  My question is about incorporating the backstroke into my workouts.  It makes sense to me about stretching and the use of accessory muscles.  Do you rotate as much with the backstroke as you do with freestyle?  The distance won't be nearly long enough to do much damage but I am very shy about my shoulders.  Any tips?

itziaol - 2011-04-13 7:02 AM

Mike_D - 2011-04-13 7:10 AM

itziaol - 2011-04-12 10:07 PM

WittyCityGirl - 2011-04-12 2:30 PM oooh, Itzia! I kept your triathlon location as "Mexico" in my dashboard because I had to look it up and double-check what country it is.  I'm awful at geography!

Don't worry, Veracruz is a port in Mexico.

http://maps.google.com/

I rode my mountain bike for 9.54 K and then swam 800m.  I didn't really try to remember minutes and strokes to play golf, but I observed that it always takes me 1:03 to do 50m, I do 19 to 23 strokes in 25m (most times 22) and I do the kick, kick, kick thing LOL  I hadn't noticed that.   By the way Sara, I loved that explanation.

Good night! 

Those are great swim numbers! Keep up the great work!

I liked the kick description as well since I had no idea what any of the six/four/two beat kick things mean. Still can't do them, but at least I know what they mean. Sorta.

Where is that fantastic Itzia on the bike avatar?

Thanks Mike!  What I didn't mention is that I rest for 30 secs more or less every 50m  LOL  I really need to get fitter!! 

Will change my avatar today! 

Going in what will surely be a difficult meeting at work.  I've decided to take charge in many areas of my life.  Wish me luck!

You can't get fitter unless you workout and you can't always workout without resting so you are right on track! 

Good luck with your work meeting! Go in and take charge

Gotta a question for you Sara, actually for anyone with Open Water Experience.

How do you personally get through that feeling of impending doom. I've read a lot on it from different resources but I would be interested in knowing what each one has done or is doing to get past that "mental feeling" in the open water?

Good question about backstroke, Chet!  Ideally, you have a lot of rotation from your hips to properly (competitively) swim backstroke, but from my observations, even the worst backstroke technique is good to challenge your muscles since I only let the really awful backstrokers swim one or two lengths of it.

So, backstroke... looking up at the sky, your feet should kick at the right wall three times, up at the sky three times, over the the left wall three times.  Kick so that you splash!  Too many people let their feet fall too low in the water.  If you have trouble getting your feet to the surface then tilt your chin/head back as if trying to look behind you (some people end up getting water up their nose when they do this, but eventually you'll learn how the water moves around your face and you can learn to prepare for water going over your face so that you can exhale through your nose so water doesn't go up there).

When you are kicking at that right wall your right arm should be extended behind you in the water, you are balancing on your armpit here, but your head is looking up at the sky.  Your left shoulder is inline with your chin.  After you kick three times on the right, pull with that right and and throw that water at your feet as you roll on to your left side.  As you are rolling onto your left side your left shoulder should have lifted out of the water first then the rest of your arm (in a straight position) comes out (thumb first).  Rotate your left hand so that your pinky enters the water first.  Keep that left shoulder high (like you're trying to keep it out of the water as long as you can) and then enter the water so that you can balance on your left armpit while you kick three times.

Don't try to "spin your wheels" and pull too fast.  It's better to keep a long line with your body and kick a few times then roll and kick on the other side.  RELAX! Have fun.  Pretend you're swimming on a cloud.

I'll reread my post and try to clarify later in the day.

Dave, this is a good question for our group to answer since I've never had that feeling-I LOVE being in the "washing machine" at the start of a race!! My swim background helped me with that.  On days before a swim meet we often played water polo to "rest" but sometimes all the physical contact and aggressive swim style wore us out more than a bunch of laps would!  Perhaps this is where experience is most useful.

Or, maybe I just need more clarification about what impending doom feels like for you... even with a wetsuit is there worry that you'll go underwater and not come back up?  Does this feeling happen even when you let people in your wave start ahead of you?

Thanks Sara.  I hope to be in the water today and tomorrow to give it a try.

Dave - My first tri was in Flagstaff and was a Sprint.  By the time I made it to the first turn I was completely exhausted and had that panic feeling you are talking about.  Three things I noticed 1) elevation makes a difference swimming!  2) I went out too fast with all the race excitement and 3) I didn't do a proper warm up.  So my advice is to swim more in the open water before the race.  Warm up!  Get in the water and swim 5-10 minutes before the start.  Swim at your own pace and find your own water.  After a couple of races you will figure out where that is.  Also, when you get hit, kicked or run into someone, remember to smile.  It really is funny after a while and it will keep your head in the race.  I know that is weird but it works really well for me.  There is so much mental toughness in triathlon and the small things keep you racing.  I am not a fan of the HTFU saying.  Negativity is a killer when you are in the "pain cave".  Positive thoughts, mantra's, and concentrating on the moment rather than what is to come are very effective ways of keeping you going when your body says stop.  Sorry so long, just my two cents.

In really gross water, I close my eyes when my face is in the water and open them to sight when it is out. Can't see my hand in front of my face anyway and I HATE looking at the bottom. Spending time paddling around when I could touch with family helped. I try to go to the lake for fun before I try to swim a long distance. No one is a bigger chicken than me. I even have someone kayak with me because I am not a strong swimmer. I now prefer open water. The pool bores me.

Sara, I guess the best way I can describe it is on my first (and only Tri so far). I got in the water probably 15 minutes before my wave and swam out about 50 yards and back. It was the first time in a wetsuit and first open water swim. I tried to get the feel for the bouyancy and manuverabilty in the suit. I actually felt good about it and that was all the warmup I did. When my wave started I was out to the side and towards the back. I started the crawl stroke, as I had practiced so many hours in the pool, and really did not try to stay with the pack but tried to find my rhythm. At about a 100 yrds out I really started to struggle with my breathing. Took in copious amounts of lake water and also got about a size twelve to the jaw. It was at that point that I felt like I could not catch my breath, I made it to the first buoy and held on but just could not settle down. I went to the next buoy doing a variation of the dog paddle and breast stroke but could not shake the feeling like I could not get a full breath. I made up my mind I would finish and I did but I came out of the water spent. I was only in there for 16 minutes but it felt like a lifetime. It took me several minutes to calm myself down but I was only able to once I was able to touch the ground. Sorry this is so long but it is the best way I can describe it for me.

Chet and Mike, Thank you guys, I really am willing to try just about anything and sharing in each others experience gives me hope.

Thank you Laura. We have a lake (about 40 minutes from here) I keep saying to Alicia we need to go down and swim but something always seems to come up. I do plan on getting there at least once before next Tri.

50andgettingfit - 2011-04-13 10:03 AM

itziaol - 2011-04-13 7:02 AM

Mike_D - 2011-04-13 7:10 AM

itziaol - 2011-04-12 10:07 PM

WittyCityGirl - 2011-04-12 2:30 PM oooh, Itzia! I kept your triathlon location as "Mexico" in my dashboard because I had to look it up and double-check what country it is.  I'm awful at geography!

Don't worry, Veracruz is a port in Mexico.

http://maps.google.com/

I rode my mountain bike for 9.54 K and then swam 800m.  I didn't really try to remember minutes and strokes to play golf, but I observed that it always takes me 1:03 to do 50m, I do 19 to 23 strokes in 25m (most times 22) and I do the kick, kick, kick thing LOL  I hadn't noticed that.   By the way Sara, I loved that explanation.

Good night! 

Those are great swim numbers! Keep up the great work!

I liked the kick description as well since I had no idea what any of the six/four/two beat kick things mean. Still can't do them, but at least I know what they mean. Sorta.

Where is that fantastic Itzia on the bike avatar?

Thanks Mike!  What I didn't mention is that I rest for 30 secs more or less every 50m  LOL  I really need to get fitter!! 

Will change my avatar today! 

Going in what will surely be a difficult meeting at work.  I've decided to take charge in many areas of my life.  Wish me luck!

You can't get fitter unless you workout and you can't always workout without resting so you are right on track! 

Good luck with your work meeting! Go in and take charge

Thank you Johanne and Sara, I went in and took charge!!!  It felt awesome!! 

From everything I've read, your first tri OWS is not an unusual happening. Having it be your first wetsuit swim & first OWS (the bold bits above) was not helping, either -- remember the old "nothing new on race day" rule of thumb. I had a few OWS before my first tri, and still had a bit of a freak out.  The wetsuit does squeeze you so breathing is not like in a pool. Plus, your heart rate is through the roof due to the anticipation, and there are suddenly a bunch of other folks right next to/on top of/below you thrashing about, waves to deal with, salt water, and no black line on the bottom. Its all enough to drive anyone crazy. Like everything else in this sport, more time practicing it will help sort out the issue! Good luck.

Dave,

I can totally relate to your first tri swim experience. I had done some open water swims before my first sprint last year but had basically the same experience as you did. I warmed up and stayed out of almost everybody's way but the lake looked huge and I couldn't catch my breath. By the time I was close to shore I was one of the last in and I had my own personal lifeguard escort. I thought I had been out there an hour but I came in on my goal time. I was exhausted though! The other tri's were better but I never really was able to get into my zone during any of them. That's one of the things I want to work on this year. Our closest lake is about 45 min away too so it's not convenient. I think with more op swims we'll all get more relaxed. Sometimes in the pool to pass the time, I'll count laps and think about different things each lap, like one of the kids or the dog or whatever (sounds silly but it made the time go fast!) so I think when I go for some op practice I'm going to try to do that and see if it'll help me relax and get in my zone.

Johanne